Blog:Pest control

Coca-Cola may have a new image problem, according to stories coming out of India, although should sales of carbonates continue to fall, Coke’s management may do well to exploit this new trend.

Cotton farmers in some Indian villages are buying up stocks Coca-Cola and Pepsi, believing that the sugar in the fizzy drinks kills pests.

According to Reuters, farmers say scientists advised them to mix pesticides with a sugary syrup to control pests, and they found the mixture cheaper and more effective than pure chemicals.

Of course Coke and Pepsi have denied the claims. But the local man who pioneered this alternative use for cola is already something of a celebrity. His crop survived an attack of pests which had resisted other remedies. "We found that all the colas had uniform effect on pests. The pests became numb and fell to ground," he said.

He said the drinks had all the elements they needed: they were cheaper, sticky, fizzy, and attracted ants, which devoured the larvae of the pests. You can't buy that sort of publicity!